The National Music Centre (NMC) is pleased to announce the opening of its updated Speak Up! exhibition on June 19 with a new round of Indigenous trailblazers. A few days later, on June 21, NMC will celebrate National Indigenous Peoples Day with free admission to Studio Bell, featuring a special live event with Indigenous song, music, and dance.
The evolving Speak Up! exhibition, which is supported by TD Bank Group, will now feature Willie Thrasher, the celebrated Inuvialuit musician who has advocated for Inuit and First Nations issues throughout his career; Juno award-winning singer-songwriter Leela Gilday from the Dene Nation; traditional pow wow singer Edmund Bull of the world champion Cree group, Red Bull Singers; and Juno Award-winning traditional trio The Bearhead Sisters from the Paul First Nation in Alberta.
On June 21 at 1:00 pm, the live event will be hosted by David McLeod, curator of the National Music Centre’s Speak Up! exhibition, and feature performances by Willie Thrasher and his partner Linda Saddleback; Cree Métis songwriter, poet, and filmmaker Sandra Sutter; and Wyatt C. Louis, a nêhiyaw singer-songwriter who melds folk and soulful blues to tell tales of love, loss and the journey home.
“I’ve been going from reserve to reserve, city after city, performing for all these years and it’s fun to hear that I’ve been included in this new exhibition,” said Willie Thrasher. “Me and Linda are honoured to come out to Calgary and perform; we’re excited to meet our native brothers and sisters, light a spirit fire for our ancestors, and share what our elders and people have shown us for so many years. We’re really honoured by all of it.”
Since 2019, the Speak Up! exhibition has showcased an annual selection of Indigenous groundbreakers from across Canada who have left their mark on culture through music. Featuring storytelling, audio, and artifacts, visitors to Speak Up! can learn how Indigenous artists are using their voices to foster dialogue and understanding to radically shift the Canadian paradigm of who First Nation, Métis, and Inuit people are.
“This year’s featured Speak Up! artists have not only made significant contributions to music but have also played crucial roles in promoting Indigenous culture and heritage. They include some of the biggest names on North America’s powwow trail and contemporary songwriters who beautifully capture stories of their life, their people, and a deep connection to the land they call home,” said David McLeod (member of the Pine Creek First Nation), Curator of Speak Up! and NMC Board Member and Chair of NMC’s National Indigenous Programming Advisory Committee.
The Speak Up! exhibition is supported by TD who, in 2022, increased its support of NMC’s Indigenous programming through the OHSOTO’KINO initiative, so named after a Blackfoot phrase that means “to recognize a voice of.” OHSOTO’KINO is led by NMC’s Indigenous Programming Advisory Committee, who act as a guiding voice for exhibitions and programs at Studio Bell. The initiative focuses on multiple elements: creation of new music in NMC’s recording studios, artist development through a music incubator program, exhibitions via the annually updated Speak Up! gallery, and digital content on NMC’s Amplify platform at amplify.nmc.ca.
Studio Bell, home of the National Music Centre, will be open from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm on June 21, National Indigenous Peoples Day, and admission will be free for everyone. Learn more at studiobell.ca/whats-on. The current iteration of the Speak Up! exhibition will open on June 19 and run until June of 2025.
